Key Benefits:
833 OF 2003
(July 10)
Official Journal No. 45,248 of 14 July 2003
PUBLIC POWER-LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
By means of which the "Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the participation of children in armed conflicts" is approved, adopted in New York, the twenty-five (25) May of two thousand (2000).
THE CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC
Having regard to the text of the "Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Participation of Children in Armed Conflicts", adopted in New York, the twenty-five (25) of May, two thousand (2000), which the letter says:
(To be transcribed: photocopy of the full text of the International Instrument mentioned).
2001 BILL 110 PROJECT
By means of which the "Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child Relating to the Participation of Children in Armed Conflicts" is approved, adopted in New York, the twenty-five (25) May of two thousand (2000).
THE CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC
Having regard to the text of the "Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Participation of Children in Armed Conflict", adopted in New York, on 25 May 2000, 25 (25), which reads:
(To be transcribed: photocopy of the full text of the international instrument mentioned).
" OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD CONCERNING THE PARTICIPATION OF CHILDREN IN ARMED CONFLICTS
States Parties to this Protocol,
Encouraged by the overwhelming support that the Convention on the Rights of the Child has deserved, which shows that there is a general willingness to fight for the promotion and protection of the rights of the child,
reaffirming that the rights of the child require special protection and that, for this purpose, it is necessary to continue to improve the situation of children without distinction and to ensure that children develop and are educated in conditions of peace and security.
Concerned about the pernicious and general effects of armed conflict on children, and their long-term consequences for lasting peace, security and development,
Condemning the fact that in situations of armed conflict children become a target, as well as direct attacks on goods protected by international law, including places where there is usually a considerable child presence, such as schools and hospitals,
Taking note of the adoption of the Statute of the International Criminal Court, in particular the inclusion of war crimes in armed conflicts, both international and non-international, of the recruitment or enlistment of children 15 years or their use to participate actively in hostilities,
Whereas in order to continue to promote the realization of the rights recognized in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, it is necessary to increase the protection of children with a view to preventing them from participating in armed conflicts,
Observing that Article 1 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child states that, for the purposes of that Convention, a child is understood to be a human being under the age of 18 years, unless, under the applicable law, he has previously attained the age majority,
Convinced that an optional protocol to the Convention raising the minimum age for the recruitment of persons in the armed forces and their direct participation in hostilities will effectively contribute to the implementation of the the principle that the best interests of the child should be a primary consideration in all decisions concerning him,
Taking note that in December 1995 the XXVI International Red Cross and Red Crescent Conference recommended to the warring parties that all viable measures be taken so that children under the age of 18 will not participate in the event. Hostilities,
Taking note with satisfaction of the unanimous approval in June 1999 of the International Labour Organization Convention number 182 on the prohibition of the worst forms of child labour and immediate action for their elimination, in The prohibition, inter alia, of forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict,
Condemning with utmost concern the recruitment, training and use within and outside the national borders of children in hostilities by armed groups other than the forces of a State, and recognizing the responsibility of who recruit, train and use children in this way,
Remembering that all parties to an armed conflict have an obligation to observe the provisions of international humanitarian law,
Stressing that this Protocol shall be without prejudice to the objectives and principles contained in the Charter of the United Nations, including its Article 51 and the relevant rules of humanitarian law,
Having present that, in order to achieve full protection of children, in particular during armed conflicts and foreign occupation, it is essential that conditions of peace and security be given based on full respect for the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and the instruments in force in the field of human rights are observed,
Recognising the special needs of children who are particularly exposed to recruitment or use in hostilities, against the provisions of this Protocol, because of their economic or social situation or their sex,
Aware of the need to take into account the economic, social and political causes that motivate children to participate in armed conflict,
Convinced of the need to strengthen international cooperation in the implementation of this Protocol, as well as the physical and psychosocial rehabilitation and social reintegration of children who are victims of armed conflict,
Encouraging the participation of communities and, in particular, children and child victims in the dissemination of information and education programmes on the implementation of the Protocol.
HAVE AGREED TO THE FOLLOWING:
ARTICLE 1o. States Parties shall take all possible measures to ensure that no member of their armed forces under the age of 18 is directly involved in hostilities.
ARTICLE 2o. States Parties shall ensure that no less than 18 years of age are compulsorily recruited in their armed forces.
1. States Parties shall raise the minimum age for the voluntary recruitment of persons in their national armed forces beyond that laid down in paragraph 3 of Article 38 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, taking into account the principles set out in that article, and recognising that under that Convention children under 18 years of age are entitled to special protection.
2. Each State Party shall, when ratifying or acceding to this Protocol, deposit a binding declaration establishing the minimum age at which it will permit voluntary recruitment in its national armed forces and offer a description of the safeguards that you have adopted to ensure that such recruitment is not carried out by force or coercion.
3. States Parties which allow voluntary recruitment into their national armed forces of under 18 years of age shall establish safeguard measures which ensure at least that:
a) That recruitment is authentically voluntary;
b) Such recruitment is done with the informed consent of the parents or persons who have their legal custody;
c) Those minors are fully informed of the duties of that Military service;
d) Present reliable evidence of their age before being accepted into national military service.
4. Each State Party may extend its declaration at any time by notification to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, which shall inform all States Parties. The notification shall take effect from the date on which it is received by the Secretary-General.
5. The obligation to raise the age as set out in paragraph 1 of this Article is not applicable to schools managed or located under the control of the armed forces of the States Parties, in accordance with Articles 28 and 29 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
1. Armed groups other than the armed forces of a state should under no circumstances recruit or use in hostilities under the age of 18.
2. The States Parties shall take all possible measures to prevent such recruitment and use, including the adoption of the necessary legal measures to prohibit and punish such practices.
3. The application of this Article shall not affect the legal status of any of the parties to an armed conflict.
No provision of this Protocol shall be construed in such a way as to prevent the application of the precepts of the order of a State Party or international instruments or international humanitarian law when those precepts are more The rights of the child are conducive to the realization of the rights.
1. Each State Party shall take all necessary legal, administrative and other measures to ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of the provisions of this Protocol within its jurisdiction.
2. The States Parties undertake to disseminate and promote, by appropriate means, among adults and children alike, the principles and provisions of this Protocol.
3. States Parties shall take all possible measures to ensure that persons who are under their jurisdiction and have been recruited or used in hostilities in contradiction with this Protocol are demobilized or separated from the service of another mode. If necessary, the States Parties shall provide these persons with all appropriate assistance for their physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration.
1. The States Parties shall cooperate in the implementation of this Protocol, in particular in the prevention of any activities contrary to it and the rehabilitation and social reintegration of persons who are victims of acts contrary to the present Protocol, inter alia through technical cooperation and financial assistance. Such assistance and cooperation shall be carried out in consultation with the States Parties concerned and the relevant international organisations.
2. States Parties which are in a position to do so shall provide such assistance through existing multilateral, bilateral or other programmes or, inter alia, through a voluntary fund established in accordance with the rules of the General Assembly.
1. No later than two years after the entry into force of the Protocol in respect of a State Party, it shall submit to the Committee on the Rights of the Child a report containing a general statement of the measures it has taken to comply with the Protocol. provisions of the Protocol, including measures taken with a view to implementing the provisions relating to participation and recruitment.
2. After the submission of the general report, each State Party shall include in reports that it submits to the Committee on the Rights of the Child in accordance with Article 44 of the Convention the additional information available to it on the implementation of the Protocol. Other States Parties to the Protocol shall submit a report every five years.
3. The Committee on the Rights of the Child may ask the States Parties for further information on the implementation of this Protocol.
1. This Protocol shall be open to the signature of any State which is a Party to the Convention or has signed it.
2. This Protocol is subject to ratification and is open to the accession of all States. Instruments of ratification or accession shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
3. The Secretary-General, as the depositary of the Convention and the Protocol, shall inform all States Parties to the Convention and all States which have signed the Convention of the deposit of each of the instruments of declaration in virtue of Article 13.
1. This Protocol shall enter into force three months after the date on which the 10th instrument of ratification or accession has been deposited.
2. In respect of States which have ratified or acceded to this Protocol after their entry into force, the Protocol shall enter into force one month after the date on which the relevant instrument of ratification has been deposited. or accession.
1. Any State Party may denounce this Protocol at any time by notifying it in writing to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall inform the other States Parties to the Convention and all States that have signed the Convention. The complaint shall take effect one year after the date on which the notification has been received by the Secretary-General of the United Nations. However, if at the expiration of that period the State Party is involved in an armed conflict, the complaint shall not take effect until the end of the armed conflict.
2. Such denunciation shall not exempt the State Party from the obligations incumbent upon it under this Protocol in respect of any act which has occurred before the date on which it takes effect. The complaint shall not in any way prevent the Committee from pursuing the examination of any matter initiated before that date.
1. Any State Party may propose an amendment and deposit it with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. The Secretary-General shall communicate the proposed amendment to the States Parties, asking them to notify him if they wish a conference of States Parties to be convened in order to examine the proposal and put it to the vote. If within four months of the date of such notification a third, at least, of the States Parties declare themselves in favour of such a conference, the Secretary-General shall convene it with the auspices of the United Nations.
Any amendment adopted by the majority of the States Parties present and voting at the conference shall be submitted by the Secretary-General to the General Assembly for approval.
2. Any amendment adopted in accordance with paragraph 1 of this Article shall enter into force when it has been approved by the United Nations General Assembly and accepted by a two-thirds majority of the States Parties.
3. The amendments, when they enter into force, shall be binding on the States Parties which have accepted them; the other States Parties shall remain bound by the provisions of this Convention and by the previous amendments which they have accepted.
1. This Protocol, whose texts in Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, French, English and Russian are equally authentic, shall be deposited in the archives of the United Nations.
2. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit certified copies of this Protocol to all States Parties to the Convention and to all States that have signed the Convention.
I hereby certify that the forging text is a true copy of the Optional Protocol to the convention on the rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 25 May 2000, the original of which is deposited with the Secretary General of the United Nations.
Je certifié que le texte qui précedé est une copie conforme du Protocole facultatif à la Convention relative aux droits de l' enfant, concernant l' implication d' enfants dans les conflitits armes, adopté par l' Assemblée générale des Nations Unies le 25 mai 2000, et dont l' original se trouvé déposé auprès du Secretaire général des Nations Unies.
For the Secretary-General The Assistant Secretary-General in charge of the Office of Legal Affairs.
Pour le Secretaire General Le Sous-Secretaire General charge du Bureau des affaires juridiques
Ralph Zacklin.
United Nations, New York 1o june 2000
Organisation des Nations Unies New York, le 1o juin 2000.
Executive Branch of Public Power
PRESIDENCY OF THE REPUBLIC
Bogotá, D. C., May 15, 2001
Approved. Submit to the consideration of the honorable National Congress for the constitutional effects.
(Fdo.) ANDRES PASTRANA ARANGO
The Foreign Minister,
(FDO.) GUILLERMO FERNANDEZ DE SOTO ".
DECRETA:
ARTICLE 1o. Approve the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the participation of children in armed conflicts, adopted in New York, the twenty-five (25) May of two thousand (2000).
ARTICLE 2o. Pursuant to Article 1 of Law 7a of 1944, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the participation of children in armed conflicts, adopted in New York, the twenty-five (25) of May 2000, 2000, which, by the first article of this law, will be adopted, will force the country from the date on which the international link with respect to it is perfected.
ARTICLE 3o. This law governs from the date of its publication.
Dada en Bogotá, D. C., a los ...
Presented to the honorable Congress of the Republic by the undersigned Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of National Defense,
The Foreign Minister,
GUILLERMO FERNANDEZ DE SOTO.
The Minister of National Defense,
GUSTAVO BELL LEMUS.
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Honorable Senators and Representatives:
On behalf of the National Government and in compliance with the provisions of Articles 150 numeral 16 and 189 numeral 2o of the Constitution Policy of the Republic of Colombia, we have the honor to submit to your consideration the Bill by means of which the " Optional Protocol of the Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the participation of children in the armed conflicts adopted in New York, the twenty-five (25) of May two thousand (2000).
International Context
According to United Nations reports, even though the preamble of the Charter of the Organization urges us to protect the coming generations from the scourge of war, we witness an abomination directed against innocent children, It is a question of the European Union, which is a very important one.
Today, in some 50 countries around the world, children suffer in the midst of armed conflict and, in the aftermath, some die and others are orphaned. Others are mutilated, uprooted from their homes, raped and subjected to other sexual abuse, are deprived of education and medical care, exploited as child soldiers and are marked by severe emotional traumas.
According to International Humanitarian Law, all non-combatants have the right to protection, but children have priority in this right. Children are innocent and especially vulnerable. They are less prepared to adapt or respond to conflict. They are the least responsible for the conflict, but suffer disproportionately from their excesses. Children are truly victims through no fault of the conflict. In addition, they represent the hope and future of the whole society; destroying children is destroying society.
In the last decade, 2 million children have been killed in conflict situations, more than one million have been orphaned, over 6 million have been seriously injured or permanently incapacitated and more than 10 million have been marked by serious trauma. Many children, and especially many young women, have been subjected to rape and other forms of sexual violence as an instrument of deliberate warfare.
Currently, there are more than 20 million children who have been displaced by the war in and out of their countries. Some 300,000 children under the age of 18 are exploited as child soldiers around the world. And every month about 800 children die or are mutilated by landmines.
The magnitude of this abomination is proof of a new phenomenon: there has been a qualitative change in the nature and execution of the war, different from the one we knew in the Modern Age.
This transformation is distinguished by several characteristics: almost all the great armed conflicts of the world are today internal conflicts, which are prolonged and lasting years, if not decades; the conflict confronts adversaries who know each other. It is, in other words, a compatriot against compatriot, neighbour against neighbour; they are characterised by social dissolution, widespread illegality, the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, the indiscriminate use of anti-terrorism landmines. personal and the involvement of many often semi-autonomous armed groups.
With the greatest lack of scruples, children have been forced to become instruments of war, being recruited or abducted to become child soldiers. A fundamental element of this struggle is the demonization of the so-called "enemy community," which is often defined in religious, ethnic, racial or regional terms and the organization of fierce hate campaigns. In the intense and intimate conditions of today's internecine wars, the village has become the battlefield and the civilian population its main target. It is the violence of the soldier against the civilian on an unprecedented scale.
In addition, the community values of many societies exposed to prolonged conflicts have been radically undermined, if not totally destroyed. This has produced a crisis of values, a "moral vacuum" in which international norms are unknown with impunity and traditional value systems have lost their authority.
In these circumstances, today up to 90% of the casualties in ongoing conflicts, compared with 5% in the first world war and 48% in the second, are civilians, and the vast majority of them correspond to children and women.
These excesses are no longer exceptional, they are widespread around the world and occur today in some 30 conflict zones. [1]
On May 25, 2000, the United Nations General Assembly, by consensus, approved the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the participation of children in armed conflicts.
With the approval of that instrument, the States Parties undertake to take all possible measures to ensure that no member of their armed forces under the age of 18 is directly involved in hostilities, as well as to ensure that they do not obligatorily recruit in their armed forces no less than 18 years old.
In accordance with Article 3 of the Protocol, the States Parties undertake to raise the minimum age for the voluntary recruitment of persons in their national armed forces beyond that laid down in Article 38 (3) of the Protocol. Convention on the Rights of the Child [2] taking into account the principles set out in that article, and recognizing that under that Convention, children under the age of 18 are entitled to special protection.
When ratifying or acceding to the instrument, each State Party shall deposit a binding declaration, establishing the minimum age at which it will permit the voluntary recruitment of persons in its national armed forces and offering a description of the safeguards that you have adopted to ensure that such recruitment is not carried out by force or coercion.
States Parties that allow voluntary recruitment in their national armed forces of under 18 years of age shall establish safeguard measures to ensure at least that:
a) That recruitment is authentically voluntary;
b) Such recruitment is done with the informed consent of the parents or persons who have their legal custody;
c) Those minors are fully informed of the duties of that military service;
d) Present reliable evidence of their age before being accepted into national military service.
Similarly, it is noteworthy that, in accordance with Article 4 of the Protocol, armed groups other than the armed forces of a State should under no circumstances recruit or use in hostilities under 18 years of age. This is a clearly innovative provision in the human rights treaties and represents the first time that a clause in one of these instruments provides for obligations that are directly based on an actor's head. state as irregular groups, as in the case of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) rules applicable to armed conflicts without international character.
Likewise, the States Parties undertake to take all possible measures to prevent such recruitment and use, including the adoption of the necessary legal measures to prohibit and punish such practices. However, and also in the manner in which the DIH treaties are being dealt with, this will not affect the legal situation of either party in an armed conflict.
The instrument also commits the international community as a whole, in so far as it establishes that the States Parties shall cooperate in its implementation, in particular in the prevention of any activities contrary to it and the rehabilitation and social reintegration of persons who are victims of acts of violation of the Protocol, inter alia through technical cooperation and financial assistance. Such assistance and cooperation shall be carried out in consultation with the States Parties concerned and the relevant international organisations.
States Parties which are in a position to do so shall provide such assistance through existing multilateral, bilateral or other programmes or, inter alia, through a voluntary fund established in accordance with the rules of the United Nations General Assembly.
Finally, the instrument will enter into force internationally three months after the date of the deposit of the tenth instrument of ratification or accession, which makes it possible to deal with a treaty in force at the next full binding force for the parties.
Internal Scope
According to Colombian legislation, those under the age of 18 are excluded from the military ranks in all forces. In fact, in anticipation of the validity of Law 548 of 23 December 1999, which extended the Public Order Law and determined that no less than 18 years of age will be able to be incorporated into the ranks, so count on their own will and that of their parents, the Army. National, on 20 December 1999, disengaged all the minor soldiers who were voluntarily in their ranks: in total about a thousand young people throughout the national territory.
The present government, since its inception, has taken the decision to adopt various measures aimed at the integral protection of children, such as the non-recruitment of minors, protection actions in relation to girls linked to the armed conflict, the eradication of anti-personnel mines (the Convention on the subject of our country recently ratified), and respect for International Humanitarian Law, among other initiatives, which are being implemented.
The issuance of Law 548 of December 23, 1999, is one of the developments of that determination. In addition to the 618 under-18s who were licensed by army, in application of that law, more than two hundred soldiers left the other armed forces.
After that Law, two members of the Baccalaureate Auxiliary Law have been incorporated and none of them were under the age of 18. This prohibition is expressly stated in the instructive number 08 of January 19, 2000, in which it is established that "(...) it is necessary to comply strictly with that law, so that minors shall not be incorporated into the law." Provision of military service in the National Police. "
Colombia is confident that this clear message from the international community has an echo in the leadership of the irregular groups that operate in our country. Sadly, between 15 and 20% of the members of the guerrillas and the self-defense groups are children. An investigation carried out by the Ombudsman's Office shows that 18% of these children have killed at least once; 60% have seen killing; 78% have seen mutilated bodies; 25% have seen kidnapping; 13% have kidnapped; 18% have seen torturing; 40% have shot at someone, and 28% have been injured. This situation should not continue. The government has already adopted the corresponding measures and hopes that, as soon as possible, the actors of the armed conflict will do the same.
Disengagement and the prevention of the involvement of children by guerrilla and self-defense groups is part of the effort that the National Government has implemented and which is reflected in the interest in the application of the law. Humanitarian International, in particular, regarding the implementation of humanitarian agreements that specifically protect the civilian population and children from the effects of the internal armed conflict. The government has repeatedly insisted that under the age of 18 not be recruited by the irregular groups, this is a matter of permanent discussion of the negotiation table between the government and the FARC [Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia] and in the talks that advances the government with the ELN.
At present, the ICBF serves children and young people who abandon armed conflict, either by capture or desertion. In recent years it has taken care of approximately 360 minors. As of November 1999, a special program of attention is given to this population, as well as institutions of reception and observation, which after a specialized diagnosis, define the location of these children with their families, in institutional or community-based programmes.
In the same way, the ICBF advances a program of attention to youth in youth clubs in areas of armed conflict oriented to the prevention of this problem.
In the same way, the new Penal Code, in the Chapter of Crimes against Persons and Goods Protected by International Humanitarian Law, is punishable by imprisonment and fine to those who, in the course of the armed conflict, recruit under 18 years of age or requiring them to participate directly or indirectly in hostilities or in armed actions (Article 162).
Constitutional Protection
The Constitution of 1991, structured on the notion of the social and democratic rule of law, and on the basis of this principle, enshrines a broad catalogue of civil, political, economic and cultural rights. Therefore, the Colombian State has an integral commitment to the protection and realization of human rights, but this is not exhausted in the internal sphere, because this commitment is also with the international community.
As a result of these principles, the Government proceeded to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The purpose of this instrument is to provide special protection for children, in consideration of their vulnerable group status.
It should also be noted that the Colombian Government has made a reservation to this international instrument, consisting of declaring that the chronological threshold of childhood, for the purposes of the provisions of Article 38 of the Convention, was the age of 18 and not the age of 15, as established by that provision. This is what is known as an 'extensive' reserve, that is, a unilateral declaration whereby the State which has the formula voluntarily assumes a more stringent obligation than that provided for in the Treaty in question.
This led the State to establish a policy of promotion, respect and guarantee of human rights and the application of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), in which it is a priority area of the work, the humanization of armed conflict.
order to achieve this goal, various measures have been adopted, which have nevertheless been insufficient to mitigate the degree of degradation of the internal armed conflict in Colombia.
One of the factors contributing to the dehumanization of the armed conflict is the perverse modality of recruitment and use of children in the war activities or related activities by the armed actors outside the law. This situation of childhood in the armed conflict makes it a victim of it, because it lacks sufficient psychological maturity to understand the sense of the war activity and to assess the consequences of the implications it has be involved in the participation of hostilities in the framework of the armed conflict.
Unfortunately this practice has increased notoriously, which has raised a special concern.
Among the consequences highlighted by the United Nations, in a report presented by Mrs. Graça Machel on the impact of internal armed conflicts on children, are:
" Present aggressive behaviors, including against themselves, including suicide; sleep disorder, such as nightmares, interrupted dreams; perceptive disorders such as the ability to speak clearly, nervousness, and Sweating, fears, lack of appetite, depression, problems of identity, weakening of personality, rupture with cultural references and the transmission of traditions. In terms of more frequent physical problems, loss of vision, loss of hearing capacity, loss of arms and legs are associated. Most of these physical limitations are caused by the explosion of anti-personnel mines or by explosion of bombs or grenades. "
Because of the above, and taking into account that children are a vulnerable population that requires special protection and that it is necessary to continue improving their situation without distinction, it is of practical and symbolic importance to ratify this supplementary treaty on the Convention on the Rights of the Child, where perhaps the most significant aspect, as it has already been highlighted, is the unequivocal and explicit prohibition of the various armed groups, other than the armed forces of the State, to recruit or use in hostilities under 18 years of age. Furthermore, the ratification of this instrument would be in perfect coherence with the Government's reservation to the Convention, in relation to the age defined by children, because this Protocol establishes the prohibition of non- involve those under the age of 18 in armed conflict.
An early ratification of this international instrument is a necessary consequence of the significant efforts and commitments advanced and acquired by the Colombian Government and the State for compliance and comprehensive compliance. of the humanitarian requirements. Furthermore, its ratification would be consistent with the active role that the delegation of our country played in the process of elaboration of the aforementioned Protocol, as well as the outstanding intervention of the Colombian delegation in the framework of the process. adoption of the international instruments provided for as complementary to the Statute of the International Criminal Court, which is expressly mentioned in the Preamble to the Protocol where it was stressed that it should be It covers the different and perverse modalities of involvement of children in activities These are linked to these by irregular armed actors, applying the age limit of 18 years.
Additionally, all civil society actors, without exception, have repeatedly expressed their repudiation and condemnation of the perpetration of these abominable practices contrary to human rights and international law. humanitarian.
For these reasons, the approval of this international instrument, in addition to strengthening the institutional coherence existing in our country for the protection of the rights of the child, would mean a resounding and very broad reiteration of the condemnation of such practices, an additional international evidence of their atrocious character and an opportunity to press for a compromise through the way forward by the government in humanitarian agreements and the tables themselves (a) negotiations aimed at achieving the abstention of the negotiations.
In this way, it would contribute to the promotion, respect, guarantee and protection of the rights of children, and this would begin to cement a culture of peace and human rights that are the axiological support of a just and orderly society.
For the reasons set out above, we allow ourselves to request the honorable Congress of the Republic to approve the "Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the participation of children in armed conflicts." Adopted in New York on the twenty-five (25) May 2000.
Of the honorable Senators and Representatives,
The Foreign Minister,
GUILLERMO FERNANDEZ DE SOTO.
The Minister of National Defense,
GUSTAVO BELL LEMUS.
1998 Law 424
(January 13)
By which the international conventions signed by Colombia are ordered to follow.
COLOMBIA CONGRESS
DECRETA:
ARTICLE 1o. The National Government through the Foreign Ministry will submit annually to the Senate and Chamber of Foreign Relations Committees, and within the first thirty days of the period after the This is a detailed report on how the existing International Conventions signed by Colombia are being complied with and developed with others.
ARTICLE 2o. Each dependency of the National Government charged with implementing the International Treaties of its competence and requiring reciprocity in them, will transfer the relevant information to the Ministry of Foreign and East relations, to the Second Commissions.
ARTICLE 3o. The full text of this law shall be incorporated as an annex to any and all International Conventions that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs presents to the Congress.
ARTICLE 4. This law governs from its enactment.
The President of the honorable Senate of the Republic,
AMILKAR ACOSTA MEDINA.
The Secretary General of the honorable Senate of the Republic,
PEDRO PUMAREJO VEGA.
The President of the honorable House of Representatives,
CARLOS SQUIRLA BALLESTEROS.
The Secretary General of the honorable House of Representatives,
DIEGO VIVAS TAFUR.
REPUBLIC OF COLOMBIA-NATIONAL GOVERNMENT.
PUBLISH AND EXECUTE.
Dada en Santa Fe de Bogota, D. C., on January 13, 1998.
ERNESTO SAMPER PIZANO
The Foreign Minister,
MARIA EMMA MEJIA VELEZ.
EXECUTIVE BRANCH OF PUBLIC POWER
PRESIDENCY OF THE REPUBLIC
Bogotá, D. C., May 15, 2001.
Approved. Submit to the consideration of the honorable National Congress for the constitutional effects.
(Fdo.) ANDRES PASTRANA ARANGO
The Foreign Minister,
(FDO.) GUILLERMO FERNANDEZ DE SOTO.
DECRETA:
ARTICLE 1o. Approve the "Convention on the Marking of Plastic Explosives for the purposes of Detection, made in Montreal, the first (1o) of March of a thousand nine hundred and ninety-one (1991)."
ARTICLE 2o. In accordance with the provisions of Article 1 of Law 7ª of 1944, the "Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the participation of children in armed conflicts", adopted in New York, the twenty-five (25) of May 2000.
ARTICLE 3o. This law governs from the date of its publication.
The President of the honorable Senate of the Republic,
LUIS ALFREDO RAMOS BOTERO.
The Secretary General of the honorable Senate of the Republic,
EMILIO RAMON OTERO DAJUD.
The President of the honorable House of Representatives,
WILLIAM VELEZ MESA.
The Secretary General of the honorable House of Representatives,
ANGELINO LIZANO RIVERA.
COLOMBIA REPUBLIC-NATIONAL GOVERNMENT
COMMUNICATE AND COMPLY.
Execute, upon revision of the Constitutional Court, in accordance with article 241-10 of the Political Constitution.
Dada en Bogotá, D. C., 10 July 2003.
ALVARO URIBE VELEZ
The Deputy Foreign Minister, in charge of the functions of the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs,
FORWARD LENIENCY.
The Minister of National Defense,
MARTA LUCIA RAMIREZ DE RINCON.
FOOTER:
[1] Source: Document A/54/430 October 1999. Report Olara Otunno, Special Representative for Children, to the UN General Assembly.
[2] Article 38.
1. The States Parties undertake to respect and to ensure that the rules of international humanitarian law applicable to them in armed conflicts are respected and that they are relevant to the child.
2. States Parties shall take all possible measures to ensure that persons who have not yet been 15 years of age are not directly involved in hostilities.
3. States Parties shall refrain from recruiting in the armed forces persons who have not been 15 years of age. If they recruit persons who have been 15 years of age, but who are under 18, the States Parties shall endeavour to give priority to older persons.
4. In accordance with the obligations of international humanitarian law to protect the civilian population during armed conflicts, the States Parties shall take all possible measures to ensure the protection and care of the children affected by an armed conflict.
